At the Net: Rafa gets the better of Roger again

Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - The great Roger Federer and amazing Rafael
Nadal met for a 29th time Thursday night in a storied rivalry that failed to
produce another classic at the BNP Paribas Open.

The fifth-ranked Nadal won easily in straight sets in the California desert, as
the 31-year-old No. 2 and four-time Indian Wells champion Federer was slowed by
a back injury suffered earlier in the week.

"I'm happy to be out there and able to compete, but it's obviously a small
issue," Federer said. "That doesn't work against guys like Rafa, obviously."

The Spanish strongman prevailed in 6-4, 6-2 fashion in a flat quarterfinal at
the first Masters 1000 event on the ATP calendar, as he improved to 19-10
lifetime against his Swiss rival, including a 6-6 record on hardcourts.

"I played a fantastic first set, in my opinion," the two-time Indian Wells
titlist Nadal said. "The second set was strange. The second set, I think Roger
didn't fight as usual. Probably he had some problems and he didn't feel
comfortable enough to keep fighting."

The French Open champion Nadal, of course, is coming back from a knee injury
that kept him sidelined for seven months. He was stunned by unheralded
Argentine Horacio Zeballos in a clay-court final (yes, a clay-court final) in
Chile in February before finally returning to the winners' circle with back-
to-back clay championships in Brazil and Mexico the past month.

"I didn't forget my tennis in seven months. But it is a big surprise for me to
have these results. That's the truth," Nadal said. "It is for me a big
surprise because I really was not able to practice a lot."

His victory over the Wimbledon champion and fellow former world No. 1 Federer
seems like a resounding proclamation of a complete return by the formidable
lefty, even though the defending IW champ Federer was clearly nowhere near 100
percent in the lackluster tussle.

The Federer injury aside, Nadal looked and played great. Scrambling to cover
the court. Sliding on the cement as if it was his beloved clay. And, of
course, winning by pounding Federer with his typical heavy lefty topspin
forehand to Federer's weaker side, his one-handed backhand.

Federer said "it was the same thing" on how he lost to Nadal following the
defeat.

The two tennis giants haven't played a truly memorable match since the 2009
Australian Open final, when Nadal came out on top in five sets, bringing
Federer to tears afterward. They've played about .500 tennis against each
other since then ... in less-than-mouth-watering affairs. And the Indian Wells
quarterfinal marked their earliest meeting in a tournament since their first
clash back in 2004.

Is the best of this classic rivalry in the past? It's sure starting to look
that way.

FYI: The 17-time Grand Slam champion Federer and 11-time major titlist Nadal
are the only pair to have met in eight Grand Slam finals, with Nadal going
6-2, including a perfect 4-0 in the title round at Roland Garros.

Thursday's win pushed Nadal to 15-1 in his comeback, including a 12-match
winning streak. He is seeking a trip into a fourth final in as many events in
2013. He's also won 11 straight matches against fellow top-10ers,
dating back to last year.